Step Afrika! Dance Company Returns to W&L The Jan. 24 performance will take place in the Lenfest Center’s Keller Theatre.

By Emily Innes
January 9, 2024

The Lenfest Center at Washington and Lee University welcomes Step Afrika! back to campus for the dance company’s 30th-anniversary performance on Wednesday, Jan. 24 at 7:30 p.m. in the Keller Theatre. Step Afrika! last performed at W&L in January 2020.

Tickets are required and available online or in person at the Lenfest Box Office.

Step Afrika! is dedicated to the African American tradition of “stepping,” and their Jan. 24 performance will weave together dance, songs, storytelling and audience participation. Stepping is a percussive, highly energetic art form first developed through the song and dance rituals performed by African American fraternities and sororities. In stepping, the body is used as an instrument to create intricate rhythms and sounds through a combination of footsteps, claps and spoken word. Each performance is unique, blending technique, agility and pure energy to create a vibrant and explosive dance experience.

Founded in 1994, Step Afrika! is one of the premier stepping groups in the country, blending traditional African dances, percussive dance styles practiced by African American fraternities and sororities, and a variety of contemporary dance and art forms into a cohesive and compelling artistic experience. Each year the company conducts a 50-city tour of colleges and theaters across the U.S. and performs globally as Washington, D.C.’s cultural ambassador, introducing audiences to the art of stepping and promoting cross-cultural engagement.

Order your tickets online today or call the Lenfest Center box office at 540-458-8000 for ticket purchase information. Box office hours are Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. The cost is $33 for adults, $30 for seniors, $27 for W&L faculty and staff and $8 for students.

For a full list of this season’s performances, visit the Lenfest Center’s website.

The Lenfest Center for the Arts, home of the Department of Theater, Dance, and Film Studies and the Department of Music and Department of Art and Art History is a multi-use facility designed and equipped to accommodate a broad spectrum of the performing arts, including theater, musical theater, opera and operetta, choral and band music, dance and performance art in one energizing complex.